England star Kevin Pietersen on Monday dropped a bombshell by suggesting that the third and final Test against South Africa might be his last.
“I can’t rule out that my next Test may be my last,” he said after winning the man-of-the-match award in the drawn second Test at Headingley after a superb innings of 149, which he followed up by taking three wickets.
Pietersen’s future was a major issue before the series against the Proteas began.
Photot: Reuters
He has already announced his retirement from from one-day international cricket, amid speculation he wanted to be available for a full Indian Premier League program, while still playing for England in the upcoming World Twenty20 in September.
“That is two of many points, but they’re not the main two points,” he said. “Let’s make that very clear, there are other points I am trying to sort out in the dressing room.”
“There are a lot of other issues. It’s absolutely 100 percent not a money issue. You’ll find out soon enough, not tonight. It will be a lot clearer after the next Test match,” he said.
Pietersen said it would be a “huge shame” if his Test career came to an end.
“I love playing Test cricket for England,” he told reporters. “The saddest part for me is that the spectators just love watching me play and I love playing for England, but the politics is what I have to deal with personally. It’s tough for me playing for England.”
Pietersen also hit out at what he suggested were media leaks about his negotiations with the England and Wales Cricket Board leading into the series.
“It was blamed on me, it was me grabbing the headlines. Did I leak anything to the media about my meetings with the ECB?” he added. “I never spoke a single word to a single journalist about anything that was spoken about behind closed doors, that I thought were closed doors.”
England captain Andrew Strauss and Pietersen attended separate press conferences.
“I don’t want to comment on what Kevin may or may not have said,” Strauss said. “I’m happy to talk about how amazingly well he played in this Test match. It was one of the best innings I have seen him play.”
“What he may or may not have said is not for me to comment on at this stage,” Strauss said.
South Africa, gunning for England’s world No. 1 Test side position, are currently 1-0 up in the series after Monday’s second Test draw. The third Test starts at Lord’s on Aug. 16.
‘AWFUL PERFORMANCE’: Golden State were always chasing the game after failing to threaten from long range, making just eight of 33 three-point attempts Aaron Gordon on Monday scored 38 points as the Denver Nuggets shrugged off the absence of Nikola Jokic to halt the Golden State Warriors’ seven-game winning streak with a 114-105 victory over their Western Conference rivals. A dazzling display from Gordon inspired what was ultimately a comfortable win for Denver, who were missing regular starters Jokic and Jamal Murray from their lineup. The absentees were barely felt by Denver, who startled the Warriors early at San Francisco’s Chase Center and led for most of the game. The Warriors threatened to stage a late rally after slashing the Nuggets’ fourth-quarter lead from 15 points
The US’ bid for a fourth consecutive CONCACAF Nations League title came to a stunning end as they fell 1-0 to Panama after a stoppage-time goal from Cecilio Waterman on Thursday in Inglewood, California. Despite dominating possession, the US struggled to break down a resilient Panama side for long periods. Panama spent the bulk of the match defending, but pounced on a giveaway by the US before substitute forward Waterman sent a shot from the right side of the area to the bottom left corner late in stoppage time. Up next for Panama in tomorrow’s final is to be Mexico, who beat
Barcelona’s Ferran Torres scored twice on Sunday to help secure a late 4-2 comeback win at Atletico Madrid in a pulsating La Liga clash that took the Catalan side back to the top of the table. Barca have 60 points and a game in hand after last week’s postponement of their home game with CA Osasuna. They are level on points with Real Madrid, who won 2-1 at Villarreal on Saturday. “I am happy and proud of this team,” Barcelona head coach Hansi Flick told a news conference. “They never give up... It’s a great three points and we are happy to
Armand Duplantis will be among the reigning Olympic champions adding star power to the world indoor championships this weekend when the Chinese city of Nanjing hosts the first major global athletics meet since the Paris Games last year. The three-day event was originally slated for 2020 and faced multiple postponements due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but Nanjing’s Sports Training Center would finally welcome more than 570 athletes for the start of the showpiece today. One of the main attractions would be pole vaulter “Mondo” Duplantis, who soared 6.27m to break the world record for a staggering 11th time in Clermont-Ferrand last
RSS